1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a device for detecting voltage and an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) using the same, and more particularly, to a Microelectromechanical System (MEMS) device for detecting voltage and an ADC using the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
Signals naturally change in an analog manner as time passes. It is necessary to know the size of signals according to time to understand natural phenomena. Values of the signal size can be processed and analyzed by a computer program. Since it is required to convert an analog signal into a digital signal to convert an analog signal into a digital signal processable and analyzable by a computer, an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) is generally used for this purpose.
An ADC may be fabricated by Microelectromechanical System (MEMS) technology. The MEMS is also referred to as micro system, micro machine, or micro mechatronics. That is, an ADC may be miniaturized using MEMS technology.
Various types of ADC are available, including a parallel ADC, a single slope ADC, a dual slope integrating ADC, and a successive approximation ADC. The parallel ADC uses an operational amplifier (Op-Amp) as a comparator, and encodes a signal to be output into a binary shape to output the signal in a digital form. If input voltage is higher than reference voltage, the comparator outputs voltage corresponding to logical value 1.
The parallel ADC may comprise a plurality of resistors to set reference voltage, a plurality of comparator to compare voltage with reference voltage, and an encoder to output a digital signal.
If an ADC comprises a plurality of resistors and comparators, the resistors and comparators would consume a great amount of power. But since more resistors and comparators are required to implement High-resolution and High-speed, far more amount of power is consumed.
As an ADC consuming low power is preferred, a device is required to consume lower power, to implement High-resolution and High-speed, and to perform functions of a resistor and a comparator.